1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an alternator driven by an engine which is mounted in a vehicle, a truck or a boat.
2. Description of the Related Art
As disclosed in JP-A-56-98358, a rotor having a mixed flow fan on one end thereof for sending cooling air in the axial direction to cool the inner periphery of a stator and the rotor.
WO92/06527 discloses a stator winding of an alternator for a vehicle. The stator winding is composed of a plurality of conductor segments, each of which can be disposed more regular than a stator winding composed of a continuously wound wire.
Although the mixed flow fan of the structure disclosed in JP-A-56-98358 provides axially flowing air, the stator winding composed of the continuously wound wire has irregularly wavy surfaces which obstructs the air flow. Therefore, effective cooling can not be attained.
According to WO92/06527, although coil ends are arranged to be regular, the coil ends are not arranged to be suitable for axial flow of the cooling air. Therefore, the air flow along surfaces thereof is obstructed.